Time-Resolved Fluorescence From Dispersed Organic Material Of Permian Basin Shales By Picosecond Laser Microscopy

A picosecond fluorescence microscopy technique is applied to the liptinite maceral, alginite, of the Woodford Shale. Lifetime measurements indicate that two dominant fluorophores are responsible for the observed fluorescence. The lifetimes can be grouped into two characteristic ranges from 50 to 200ps and 500 to 900ps. There are indications that the higher rank (more mature) samples have shorter component lifetimes which may explain the lower fluorescence intensity witnessed with increasing rank. Continuous wave (c.w.) spectra are also given.